Reed first runner-up in pageantWhile most 16-year-olds are enjoying the beginning of their summer, Aubrey Reed, of Russellville, is winding down after earning first runner-up at the Miss Arkansas' Outstanding Teen competition on Saturday. "The pageant was a lot of fun," Reed said. "I made a lot of new friends. It was a great experience." Reed is no stranger to the pageant world. This marks her 10th pageant. "This year was a little different because there were so many new co...

Men accused of stealing $4,700 in energy drinksPolice in Northern California said they arrested five men for stealing $4,700 worth of energy drinks. Vacaville police officers nabbed the four adults and one juvenile Friday night as they wheeled a cart full of Red Bull out of a grocery store and loaded it into a waiting U-Haul van. The Vacaville Police Department said the grocery store was one of many places visited by the group. Police said the U-Haul van was packed with the energy drink. P...

ANO lawsuit going forwardLITTLE ROCK -- An attorney representing the family of a man killed during a 2013 accident at Arkansas Nuclear One (ANO) said Thursday he hoped a Pope County jury could hear the case within a year or two. Wade Walters, 24, was an ironworker subcontracted who died March 31, 2013, after a 1-million-pound stator snapped a hoisting crane. Eight others were injured in the accident. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) initially c...

Pope County's 2016 Farm FamilyWhitney and Jared Mahoney never thought their dream of operating their own farm would come true. When it finally did, things moved fast. "I must admit, I did not grow up with dreams of being a farmer," Jared said. "Jared did not grow up on a farm," Whitney said. "They had some cattle and a couple of horses, but it wasn't a farm." "It wasn't until Whitney and I had been dating for several years that I really started to consider what all this li...

Man steals 301 items from storeGary A. Meier told District Judge Don Bourne he wasn't trying to steal a cart filled with $2,400 worth of items when he pushed them out the front door at Wal-Mart on June 3. "I had no intention of stealing anything," he said during felony bond hearings on Friday. "I didn't even have a car." Meier said he got a phone call that his fiance's life was in danger, so he left the store with the items. All items were returned, but due to company polic...

MAROTeen Friday preliminariesFOR THE COURIER Miss Arkansas' Outstanding Teen completed preliminary competitions Friday evening at The Center for the Arts in Russellville. The alpha group competed in physical fitness in active wear and evening gown. The beta group competed in artistic expression in talent. The Teens-in-Action award is based on the young ladies' work with their platforms. Five young ladies are chosen based on their work then have a private interview with a ...

Camp JamFestMany children throughout the Arkansas River Valley look forward to some kind of summer camp. Whether it lasts all summer or just a few days, many camps give the participants experiences they aren't likely to receive at home or at the babysitter's. Forty children in Pope County attended Camp JamFest this summer, which is an integrated two-week day camp for both children with and without disabilities that has been taking place daily since last w...

Dover says goodbye to WPA GymDOVER -- This week was a somber one for this community, as Pirate family and friends said goodbye to the WPA Gymnasium last weekend, then watched as the gym was torn down in a matter of days. The WPA Gym, dedicated in 1938, could not be preserved. After a report from a structural engineer, the state fire marshal and Arkansas Department of Education, it became clear the gym should be torn down. The Dover School Board exhausted all possibilities...

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BY SEAN INGRAM sean@couriernews.comThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Quorum court grants $40,000 to Pope prisonIt's not a free world. Nearly everything costs money, even in jail. A law passed last year by the Arkansas Legislature has allowed sheriff's departments throughout the state to be reimbursed so they can purchase new equipment and supplies. Pope County Sheriff Shane Jones said the law has directed money from jail commissaries and the money they use to make phone calls back into the buildings where they are incarcerated. Jail Director Rowdy Swee...

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BY SEAN INGRAM sean@couriernews.comThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Arvest provides more than 1.7 million mealsFORT SMITH -- Two months ago, Arvest Bank launched its annual 1 Million Meals initiative to fight hunger in the four-state region the bank serves. The bank announced recently that, with the help of customers and community members, it has exceeded the campaign goal by raising a total of 1,712,601 meals in the fight against hunger. Launched in 2011, Arvest's 1 Million Meals campaigns have raised a six-year total of 9,604,185 meals, which include...

Step one: Central fire station site readied Demolition crews worked this week to ready the site for the future central fire station in Russellville on North El Paso Avenue behind the familiar 500 Building. The building that was located on the site was torn down and ruble removed. The Russellville City Council voted in May to allocate $6.5 million to the construction of the station.

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THE COURIER / Jenn TerrellThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Academy teaches more than classesThe Arkansas Tech University (ATU) Upward Bound summer academy condujcted its first community service project of the summer less than a week after the academy began at the end of May. Nearly 120 ATU Upward Bound students helped clean up the Dardanelle Primary School on June 3. "Our students love it," Jill Hendricks, director for Upward Bound Projects at Arkansas Tech University (ATU), said. "They love the community service projects." The stude...

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BY JENN TERRELL terrell@couriernews.comThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

MAROTeen first night preliminaryTHE COURIER / Submitted Miss Arkansas' Outstanding Teen completed the first night of preliminary competition Thursday evening at The Center for the Arts in Russellville. The alpha group competed in artistic expression in talent and the beta group competed in physical fitness in active wear and evening gown. Alpha awards are for young ladies competing at the state level for the first time. Alpha winners on Thursday night were: Madeline Adams Mi...

Crow Mountain Fire District lawsuit yet to be refiledOne of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the Crow Mountain Fire Protection District said Thursday that the lawsuit still has yet to be refiled in Pope County Circuit Court. David Ivy said the attorney for he and Danny Cothren, Sam Eastman, has told him the suit would be filed some time next week. They are going through the document to make sure there aren't any more reasons for dismissal like what occurred last month. "We are just making sur...

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BY SEAN INGRAM sean@couriernews.comThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Court date set for suspect in sexual assaultA Russellville man arrested in April after he was accused of sexually assaulting two girls is scheduled to appear Monday in Pope County Circuit Court. Howard S. Stane, 44, had bond set at $150,000 by District Judge Don Bourne following an April 29 bond hearing at the Pope County Detention Center (PCDC). Stane was charged by the Fifth Judicial Prosecuting Attorney's Office with second-degree sexual assault and two counts of sexual indecency wit...

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BY SEAN INGRAM sean@couriernews.comThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Crown Club helps feed, dress Russellville studentsThe Russellville High School (RHS) Crown Club spends the majority of the year making dinner, going to prom and even interviews for jobs attainable by Russellville youth. The Crown Club is a fundraising and project-oriented club that is part of Junior Auxiliary of Russellville and includes a small group of girls who are in 10-12th grade at RHS. Holly Pace, the chair of the group, is very excited about the projects the groups takes on and how mu...